NEW YORK COMIC CON COVERAGE DAY 2

Throughout the 2016 calendar year VIZ Media has been celebrating it’s 30th Anniversary!

VIZ started waaay back in 1986 and is showing no signs of slowing down. VIZ is continuously on the forefront of bringing North American consumers some of the best and brightest manga and anime every year.

Probably the best part of the celebration has to be the Shikishi Wall!

“To help VIZ celebrate our 30th anniversary, the biggest creators in Japan sent us some celebratory wishes in the form of exclusive shikishi (artboards). Artists including Rumiko Takahashi, Yusuke Murata, Eiichiro Oda and others sent in over 75 pieces of exclusive art to the VIZ office to help celebrate. The shikishi were first unveiled at this year’s Anime Expo, and then a new set was revealed at last month’s San Diego Comic-Con.”

I took a couple of pictures of the beautiful shikishi wall, but of course my attention was drawn to Hiromu Arakawa’s work (FullMetal Alchemist). I guess some of the pieces didn’t travel so well. :___(

NYCC is the LAST stop on tour for the Shikishi Wall so I hope everyone got a chance to stand in awe at it’s greatness.

Below will be more pictures of the shikishi wall in cased to missed it.

Manga Announcements

VIZ excited to announce that due to fan support they are going to be able to continue publishing more of

Legend of the Galactic Heroes

by Yoshiki Tanaka

Touted as an epic space opera/military sci-fi novel, Legend of the Galactic Heroes takes place “in the thirty-sixth century, humanity has conquered the galaxy and colonized countless star systems. The Galactic Empire, modeled along Prussian lines, and the democratic Free Planets Alliance are at war, and the fate of every human being in the universe hangs in the balance.”

Currently, VIZ has announced volumes 4, 5, and 6, slated for release later next year.

Acquisitions Set for 2017 Release!

Announced days before, VIZ goes over the acquisition of,

Anonymous Noise · Spring 2017

by Ryogo Fukuyama

“A girl who loves to sing, Nino Arisugawa experiences her first heart-wrenching goodbye when her beloved childhood friend, Momo, moves away. And after Nino befriends Yuzu, a music composer, she experiences another sad parting! With music as their common ground and only outlet, how will her unrequited loves play out? Since both boys promised Nino that they would find her one day through her singing, she holds on to that hope and continues to reach out with her voice. Now in high school, Nino serendipitously reunites with Yuzu, but she yearns to see Momo again…”

After Hours · Summer 2017

by Yuhta Nishio

Emi Asahina is 24, unemployed, and not really sure what she wants to do with her life. When a friend invites her to a dance club, Emi doesn’t expect much but decides to give it a try…and ends up hiding in the corner after her friend ditches her for a dude! Emi figures the night is a bust, but then an exciting woman comes to her rescue. Kei is a DJ, and her effortless self-confidence captivates Emi. Is this the start of something special or just one wonderful night?

BORUTO: Naruto Next Generation · Spring 2017

by Ukyo Kodachi (writer) and Milio Ikemoto (illustrator)

BORUTO: NARUTO NEXT GENERATION is getting a english translation by VIZ! Shocker right?!

Boruto takes place after the evens of the original Naruto manga following Naruto’s son, Boruto, as he learns to become a great ninja.

Golden Kamuy · Summer 2017

by Satoru Noda

The manga right here looks right up my alley!
The winner of the 2016 Manga Taisho Award and 2014 Manga Taisho Young Jump Award, Golden Kamuy is finally getting a Western release!

“Sugimoto the Immortal,” a surviving soldier of the Russo-Japanese War, seeks the riches promised by a gold rush in Hokkaido, Japan’s frozen north. Instead, he stumbles upon the tale of a vast stash of Ainu gold and sets off on a dangerous treasure hunt with only a young Ainu girl as his guide. Just one problem: the map to the treasure was tattooed on the skins of criminals, and Sugimoto has to vie with said criminals, the military, wild animals and even a specter of the Shinsengumi to piece together the map.

Tokyo Ghoul: RE · Fall 2017

by Sui Ishida

The 2014 sequel to Sui Ishida’s, Tokyo Ghoul, is coming westward in 2017. Tokyo Ghoul: RE takes place after the events of the main series.

“The main character is Haise Sasaki, a Ghoul Investigator assigned to oversee a squad of unruly young Investigators that have had ghoul traits experimentally implanted into them. The pressure is on this experimental and temperamental squad to become the best Ghoul Investigators and their mettle will first be tested tracking down a gruesome ghoul known as ‘Torso.’”

VAMPIRE KNIGHT: MEMORIES · Summer 2017

by Matsuri Hino

“VAMPIRE KNIGHT: MEMORIES is a continuing collection of short stories from creator Matsuri Hino that delves into Yuki and Zero’s time as a couple in the past, and explores the relationship between Yuki’s children and Kaname in the present. These are gorgeously drawn and heartfelt stories sure to delight fans of the original series.”

VIZ also reiterated that they will be publishing, The Pokemon Cookbook: Easy & Fun Recipes out December 6th, but they will also be publishing a new Pokemon Adventures Artbook! This new artbook will contain; sketches, storyboards, and even an all-new manga!

That’s it for all the manga announcements, now on to some rehashed news.

Something I saw a lot of during the panels this year at NYCC was the push for free-to-play mobile games.

Mobile Game Spotlight:

Naruto Shippuden Ultimate Ninja Blazing the first free to play Naruto Ultimate Ninja game on mobile.

Home Video Release Spotlight:

Naruto Shippuden Uncut vol 28 DVD (contains episodes 349-361) This set is special because is has the entire Kakashi Onbu Black Ops Arc based on the Kakashi story novel.

On to the news that some, and I use that a bit loosely, some TOONAMI fans might care about; all 4 volumes of Sword Art Online are out and available to purchase, as is a Limited Edition Music Collection that will be available January 27th, 2017 and will run you just about $40. Pre-orders are open on multiple sites for the SAO Music Collection.

The biggest news to come out of the Aniplex USA panel is that Aniplex are planning on doing a WORLDWIDE release for the Sword Art Online Movie: Ordinal Scale! Alex Crum stated that he is hoping to have the movie out by February 18, 2017. But I guess we shouldn’t quote him on that since the official site still says Spring 2017.

For those interested in the best part of SAO, the music, Yuki Kajiura is hosting a concert titled, Yuki Kajiura Live in Hollywood featuring Sword Art Online! The concert will take place at the Dolby Theatre at Hollywood & Highland on January 14th, 2017.

Aaaand….that’s basically it! I blame the panel being such a borefest because for once the Aniplex Guy wasn’t hosting it.

But before I end my coverage of the Aniplex USA panel, there is something of interest that did catch my ear, or rather didn’t. When talking about the English Dub release of ERASED, a fan asked Crum about his favorite Aniplex dubs. I was shocked to not hear him say what is considered to be the ‘gold standard’ in quality anime dubs, FullMetal Alchemist. I don’t know if it is simply because I am such a massive FMA fan, but I did find it odd that there was no sight seen or fullmetal klink to be heard from Aniplex in regards to FMA. It didn’t even show up in the Sony classic montage video!

Oh……..

¯\_(ツ)_/¯…..okay then.

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QUEST COMPLETE! BANDAI NAMCO ENTERTAINMENT RPG PANEL

For some reason, the NYCC Bandai Namco Ent. panel never disappoints me. Even though I tend to never really be all that interested in their properties the enthusiasm of the Bandai Namco staff rubs off on me and just gets me all sorts of hyped for their software! However, there is one game of interest to me that Bandai Namco happen to be Publishing, Ni No Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom. And I was shocked out of my gourd when the first thing to come out of panelists mouth was Ni No Kuni II news! The news was…that there is no news to report. Bandai Namco is not yet ready to talk about Ni No Kuni II. Man this panel knows how to lift me up only to kick me straight back down.

Even though they were not going to talk about the one J-RPG of theirs that I was interested in doesn’t mean the panel was going to be a complete borefest.

Bandai Namco Entertainment brought some of their greatest producers to NYCC to talk about some of their most popular series.

DIGIMON World: Next Order

First up, was Kasumasa Habu, Producer on multiple Digimon games including; Digimon Story: Cyber Sleuth, Digimon World Re:Digitize and Digimon World Re:Digitize Decode, to talk about the next title he is producing, DIGIMON World: Next Order.

Habo-San described the newest DIGIMON World title as a ‘raising RPG kind of game.’ Digimon partners obey/reject orders depending on how you raise them.

Raising, Training, and Feeding is the main focus of the game.

No release date was announced for DIGIMON World: Next Order.

Tales of Berseria

We move on from Digimon to the Tales series.

Yasuhiro Fukaya, Producer of Tales of Berseria, takes over to talk about, what else? Tales of Berseria!

The opening cinematic was shown as well as a boss fight to show off the seamless transition from battle to cutscene.

Tales of Berseria is coming Early 2017, but because Bandai Namco loves the NYCC crowd so much they announced that Berseria will be available January 24th in the US for PS4 and January 27th for Steam!

If you preorder Berseria from either Gamestop or straight from Bandai Namco you will get a ‘Benifu 8-bit Retro Keychain!’

But if you really want to show your love of Tales, Bandai Namco revealed the Tales of Berseria Collector’s Edition!

Retailing at $149.99 this special edition is limited to ONLY 10,000 units Worldwide!

Tales of Berseria Collector’s Edition Contents:

Tales of Berseria Game Software

Individually Numbered Collector’s Edition Packaging

Limited Edition set of Chibi Kyun Chara Figures

Hardcover Prequel Novel “A Witch’s Tale: A World Full of Demons”

Special selection Music CD

Starter Strategy Guide Artbook

8-Bit Retro Keychain Set

Steelbook® Case

Special Trading Card Set

After all the hype from the previous announcement, Fukaya-san calmed the crowd by mentioning their mobile initiative title, Tales of LINK.

Then, almost as if they planned this panel out, they announced a Collaboration Event for Tales of LINK x Sword Art Online.

You can download Tales of LINK from iTunes or the Google Play store.

Sword Art Online

Nicely segwaying into Yosuke Futami’s (Producer of Sword Art Online (TV) as well as the games; Sword Art Online: Lost Song) portion of the panel. Futami-san was here to show off gameplay and talk about the latest SAO title he’s producing, Sword Art Online: Hollow Realization.

Futami talked about the different gameplay mechanics but mainly the matchmaking system. The most interesting part in this segment was the fact that you are given the chance to romance BOTH women and men! Also, a main theme in this game is the raising the AI. Depending on how you treat/interact with your partners you can raise the AI to be either good or bad.

Announced earlier that week at Dengeki Bunko Fall Festival, the most popular character of the animation, Yuuki is coming to SAO: Hollow Realization. Kizmel, a character from the light novels was also announced to be joining the roster of SAO: Hollow Realization during TGS (Tokyo Game Show).

Sword Art Online: Hollow Realization will be available in the US on November 8th, 2016 for both the PS4 and PS Vita.

As a special promotion, if they can get 30,000 players to pre-register for the game ALL players will receive special in-game rewards.

Also, once you preregister you will be entered in a raffle to win Sword Art Online: Hollow Realization Collector’s Edition! MSRP of $149.99!

If you have a friend who’s a big fan of SAO be sure to give them the heads up! You have until 11:59 (PDT) onOctober 31st to pre-register for the contest!

No release date was given for Sword Art Online: Memory Defrag only that it is ‘coming soon.’

The final announcement of the Bandai Namco Entertainment America Panel wasn’t really an announcement but rather a reminder. Sword Art Online The Movie: Ordinal Scale will be available Spring 2017. I guess they weren’t available for the Aniplex panel earlier in the day.

Fun Fact! Futami-san seems to get confused for Hideo Kojima by eager fans. You be the judge, I for one kinda see it. But I think it’s just the similar hairstyle and glasses rather than actual facial structure.

I was actually quite shocked at how hands-off this panel was. I do not know if that is due to VIZ, Mr. Yusei Matsui himself, or Japan Society’s wishes. There were ABSOLUTELY no pictures or video allowed during any of Mr. Matsui’s appearances around NYCC and beyond.

But…if you are curious, here’s a picture of him I pulled from the internet, enjoy!

This panel was all about the US manga community getting to better know the mangaka (manga artist), Yusei Matsui (Assassination Classroom, Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo), so expect a bunch of fun facts, developer notes, and silly anecdotes.

Mr. Matsui grew up in a pretty strict household, his parents would not buy him manga so he decided to create his own.

Mr. Matsui hopes to one day become a teacher himself and believes that a person becomes a teacher to pass on his or her experiences onto their students, so he decided to make a manga based on this idea.

Koro-sensei was not inspired by any of Mr. Matsui’s teachers. Mr. Matsui just thought of what it would be like to be a teacher and thus the ground-work for Koro-Sensei began.

Some of the first images that ever popped into Mr. Matsui’s head for Assassination Classroom are depicted in first two pages of the manga!

A teacher enters the classroom to greet his students only to have them greet him with GUNFIRE!

Idea to get the students to kill to assassinate their teacher just popped into his head.

When thinking about this, Mr.Matsui had to think about what powers would be good for the teacher to have. First Telepathy and Super Speed came to mind. Mr. Matsui decided to go with Super Speed since Telepathy was basically an automatic win.

Koro-sensei’s design is actually from a manga that did not make it,…so “I just used it!”-Yusei Matsui

Mr. Matsui believes that simple art is more universally understandable. Therefore, when coming up with Koro-sensei’s design he was siding back and forth between a slimy blob or an octopus. Both were easy to draw.

When creating his work, Mr. Matsui doesn’t think “What do I want to write. But rather, what does my audience want to read.”

Shonen Jump takes a break 3 times a year. During those breaks Mr. Matsui locks himself inside a hotel room to create new ideas.

When the anime was green-lit Mr. Matsui already knew what the ending was going to be and conveyed that to the animators. Matsui wanted to make sure that the ending was perfect! From the start Matsui has stuck to his original intentions.

For the Live-Action Movie Matsui had to go back and correct the director on a couple of things. For example, Koro-sensei’s skin. The texture of his skin was too slimy, scaly and realistic. Also the sound of Koro-sensei’s tentacles. It’s very important and Matsui wanted to make sure it was done right.

Before everyone took their seats for the panel there was a sheet of paper on our chairs. It was a rather interesting 10 Question Survey from Japan Society. which was collected after the panel.

Of note were question’s 7 and 9;

“Would you be interested in attending Japan-related events in the Future? What type of Events?”

“What other Japanese content (creators, voice actors, directors, musical artists, etc.) would you like to see at future New York Comic Cons?”

I of course put down Live-Art Demonstrations/Battles and for the queen of manga (at least in my eyes) Hiromu Arakawa(FullMetal Alchemist) to grace us with her presence. If Japan Society brings her to NYCC next year I will truly cry.

And with that we bring a close to a very eventful Day 2 of NYCC Coverage. I highly recommend being nimble on your feet and pack a bunch of snacks and water if you hope to endure the 4 day con grind.
I’m wiped!

BONUS: Pictures of the ONLY 2 Cosplayers I stopped for photos!
Aisha Clan-Clan from OutLaw Star! @sooo_grood

Wuya from Xioalin Showdown! Unfortunately, I was unable to locate her DA page.